In order to form three-dimensional (3D) integrated circuit structures, through-substrate vias (TSVs) are used to electrically couple front-side features to the backside features of a wafer. On the front side, there may be interconnect structures and metal bumps, for example. On the backside, there may be metal bumps and redistribution lines. Dual-side alignment needs to be performed in order to accurately align the backside features and the front-side features with each other.
Typically, the front-side features are formed on the wafer first, followed by a backside grinding to thin a silicon substrate in the wafer, until the TSVs are exposed. Front-side alignment marks are incorporated in the front-side features. The dual-side alignment is performed from the backside using an infra-red (IR) alignment system for locating the front-side alignment marks, wherein the infra-red light emitted by the IR alignment system penetrates through the thinned silicon substrate to reach the front-side alignment marks. Backside alignment marks are then made on the backside of the wafers by etching into the backside layer(s) and into the silicon substrate.
Due to the limitation of the IR alignment system, and further due to the thickness variation in the grinded silicon substrate, the accuracy of the dual-side alignment is low, and the misalignment may be as high as about 2 μm.